Those four were eventually dropped by Moto, while Shaw has now decided that the remaining patent does not violate Moto's IP, Bloomberg reports.

Commission will ratify

The preliminary decision will now be ratified by the six-person trade panel, which has the power to ban imports of products that invalidate patents.

"We are pleased with the Administrative Law Judge's finding that Microsoft did not violate Motorola's patent and are confident that this determination will be affirmed by the Commission," said David Howard, Microsoft's corporate vice president and deputy general counsel.

Meanwhile, in its statement, Moto said it was looking forward to the full verdict of the trade commission, while an appeal is also on the cards should that decision not go its way.